New Girl….

Well some suggestions for a name for New Girl have come in….. Lola, Gracie, Kiki, Hazel to name a few… a friend of mine also took the time to do some research in the African name genre…. Anaya- means ‘look up to God’; Bella- ‘slave freed’; Binta- ‘with God’, Nadira- ‘unusual’; and my personal favorite-‘ Wub because it means gorgeous – beautiful. I am torn because I love the meaning of Wub, but am not sure it is ‘the name’. Her personality is really beginning to show, which I think will help determine the final name. In the meantime, keep those suggestions coming!

I have a lot to tell you about New Girl and African Greys in general, so let’s start with these lovely birds and their coloring. They are called African Grey; however, I was surprised to learn a number of years ago that their feathers are actually blue. The blue is not visible to the human eye because of the powder that coats the birds feathers. The powder, (normal in a healthy bird), does not allow light to penetrate and reveal the true color of the feathers- blue. Well, since we know New Girl has been ill and been extremely stressed, she does not have any powder. After a number of showers the feathers she does have are still dark grey, when they should be lighter. However, looking back I wonder if she had the normal powder coating on her feathers if, indeed, her feathers would appear normal…anyway, I digress….What I have found most wonderful is the opportunity to actually see some blue on the remaining feathers on her back. She is a bit camera shy so it has been difficult to get good shots, but check these out….

Aren't they pretty?

There you have it… a hint of blue…I feel privileged to have the opportunity to see these as they are without powder. However, we are looking forward to New Girl getting healthy and having her powder restored. 🙂

Speaking of getting healthy, I have been feeding her Harrison’s High Potency Coarse crushed and made into a ‘mush’, which she is enjoying tremendously. The benefits of this diet is showing in the appearance of new feathers. I know I had previously posted a photo with new feathers shafts appearing on her chest, but those have not really come out. She is, however, getting new feathers on her back and a few other areas. It is most obvious on her back and only visible when she is preening and very exciting to see…..

It’s a bit difficult to catch the photo when she’s preening, but definitely worth the wait…. 🙂 Kinda looks like she has a cowlick in the pic on the right, doesn’t it?

Comments

Thank you for clearing this up for me. My Cag got dirty and I took him a shower with some mild soap and noticed for the first time alot of blue feathers. It freaked me out and I couldn’t find anything online until I cam across your post.